Yes, it is that time of the year again! March, board exams, winters silently slithering out and Holi.
For those who want to know a little bit about Holi,there was a demon-king named Hiranyakashipu who was very cruel and ordered everybody to worship him and not the Lord. However, his little son Prahlad refused to do so and continued to worship the almighty Lord Vishnu, the Hindu God. He tried hard to kill him but every time Lord Vishnu saved him. One of the sisters of the king named Holika had a boon to remain unscathed by fire, so she followed her brother's wishes. However, with this sinful act against Lord Narayana's devotee, Holika's boon ended and she was burnt to ashes, while Prahlad came out safe. From that day onwards Holi is celebrated as the festival of the victory of good over evil. Even today, bonfires are lit on the night before Holi in memory of the event and burning of the evil Holika. It symbolizes the victory of Good over evil.
SO, this is the one time of the year when I see an explosion of colours all over the country! People singing and dancing and eating, families coming together, smearing all the colours of gulal playfully on each other! Girls screaming with glee when beaned with water balloons and kids running around, and the parents running after them!! The old timers giving their infinite blessings with sweets to the younger ones. Water flowing everywhere, loud dance numbers playing behind, the scent of flowers and the streaks of colours like magenta, lime, bright yellow, turquoise shot in the air! 
However I think I am generally afraid of getting beaned with water balloons plus the quality of colours and the very hard work that needs to be done to get ALL that off of me. Call me lazy if you want, that this is the bottom-line for me!
Still, there is something very bright and positive about this festival. It is the death of evil and the supreme reign of the power of the Lord. It is a reminder that no matter how much evil tries to take over the universe, it will always be defeated. Goodness will always remain. Love amongst people will always remain. Faith will always remain. The colorful festival bridges the social gap and renew sweet relationships.
This Holi, let us enjoy the wonderful positive vibrations and pray for peace to reign, for goodness to reign, for all auspicious things to happen and for the world to be a more peaceful place to live in.
We all come together in colours.
Its Holi !
Mahashivratri
According to the Puranas (Sanskrit: पुराण purāṇa, "of ancient times" group of important Hindu or Jain and Buddhist religious texts, consisting of narratives of the history of the universe from creation to destruction), during the great mythical churning of the ocean called Samudra Manthan, a pot of poison emerged from the ocean. The gods and the demons were terrified as it could destroy the entire world. When they ran to Lord Shiva for help. He in order to protect the world, drank the deadly poison but held it in his throat instead of swallowing it. This turned his throat blue, and since then he came to be known as 'Nilkantha', the blue-throated one. Shivratri celebrates this event by which Shiva saved the world.
It is the night of the worship of Lord Shiva, occurs on the 14th night of the new moon during the dark half of the month of Phalguna (the twelfth month of the Hindu calendar). It falls on a moonless February night, when Hindus offer special prayer to the lord of destruction. Shivratri (Sanskrit 'ratri' = night) is the night when he is said to have performed the Tandava Nritya or the dance of primordial creation, preservation and destruction. The festival is observed for one day and one night only.
The Maha Shivratri celebration includes
various spiritual practices such as repetition of mantra, hymns, satsang,
and meditation that purify the human mind.
The sages have said that by repeating a conscious mantra Om Namah Shivaya (a mantra becomes
conscious or live when received through a guru parampara coming down from
the original Guru, Lord Shiva) with devotion, concentration, and
understanding, the mind becomes free from its negative impressions. Just as
one cleans one's dirty clothes with soap, so also one can clean one's mind
of its negative impressions through a conscious mantra. It can destroy one's
difficulties, impurities or bad karmas of many lifetimes. Such is the power
of a conscious mantra repetition. Just as by pouring water at the root of a
tree, all its branches get nourished, so also by worshipping your own inner
Spirit (called by many names including Ishwar, Shiva, Krishna, Rama,Jesus, Buddha,
Mahavira, Nanak, and Allah) all gods and goddesses are automatically
worshipped. This is the secret of all secrets.
One of the names of Lord Shiva is Asutosh, which means "easily pleased." Let
us pray: "O Asutosh! You are my innermost Spirit. My body is your house. In
every pore of my body, in every blood cell of my body, and in every particle
of my body, you dwell. My actions in this world are your worship. My speech
is your prayer. I am in you and you are in me and everyone. Let my mind be
absorbed in the conscious mantra so that its vibrations of universal love,
wisdom, and peace pass into all beings."
May everyone have a Blessed year!
Happy Mahashivratri!!
